DinarAlert Iraqi Television Transcript Service (ITTS)

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1 4/17/15 Al Iraqiya nightly news Today's evening news covers the dangerous situation developing in Anbar Province especially around Ramadi, Prime Minister Haidar Abadi said from the United States that "we will not abandon you" to the people of Anbar sending reinforcements according to military sources, it has been reported that Ezzat Ibrahim al-douri who was a prominent aid to Saddam Hussein and the leader of the Sunni insurgency against the government was killed in military operations in Salaheddin Province, the supreme religious authority said after Friday's prayers that all sects and religions have to stand shoulder to shoulder in fighting the common enemy, economist Dr. Ali Mahmoud who just returned from visiting several European countries and the United States said several high ranking members of multinational companies including CEOs have expressed interest in investing in Iraq's infrastructure and industries as soon as the security situation allows, during the Prime Minister s visit to America Iraq received commitments of $200 million in humanitarian aid in addition to soft loans and a shipment of arms on a deferred payment basis, the Ministry of Construction and Housing revealed that Iraq lost over two trillion Dinars as a result of terrorist activities including blowing up bridges and highways along with the loss of priceless artifacts, the Kurdish airline Zagros Jet has been given a license to fly domestically, and a member of parliament said that the Iraqi Dinar is undervalued and the CBI should start taking measures to increase its value. - Main news: The dangerous situation in Anbar Province especially in Ramadi is apparent as thousands of civilians leave the city seeking refuge elsewhere; the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) released propaganda videos 1

2 showing their advances in and around the city; security forces say that the terrorist organization controls a part of eastern Ramadi while the center of the city and the rest of it remains firmly in the hands of the security forces and tribal fighters; a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense said that the army will soon launch a counter offensive to counter the advances of the Islamic State; council member Sabah Karhout said that the situation in Anbar Province is becoming critical; that opinion was echoed by two deputy governors who complained that the United States led coalition is not conducting enough airstrikes in the area and if ISIL succeeds in taking Ramadi there will probably be a blood bath and an increasing amount of refugees fleeing to Baghdad and other cities, moreover it will become harder to dislodge the terrorists from the city itself; Prime Minister Haidar Abadi said from the United States that "we will not abandon you" to the people of Anbar; reinforcements started arriving according to military sources - In the north the fight over the control of Beiji oil refinery is still raging with the Islamic State in control of sections of the sprawling facilities but security forces say that they are in control of the refinery itself, Beiji is the largest refinery in Iraq; member of parliament Ahmad al-jubouri said that security forces killed 130 ISIL terrorists around Tikrit, he described them as sleeper cells; he added that this took place as security forces were looking for explosives and other booby traps in house to house searches; he confirmed that Tikrit and the surrounding areas are firmly in the hands of the security forces - In other related news it was reported that Ezzat Ibrahim al-douri, a prominent aid to Saddam Hussein and a high ranking member of the Baath party in addition to being the leader of the Sunni insurgency against the government with clear ties to the Islamic State was reported killed in military operations in Salaheddin Province - The Kurdish Peshmerga forces reported that they killed at least twelve ISIL terrorists in artillery shelling east of Mosul. The Prime Minister office spokesman said that the Prime Minister has completed his scheduled visit and he and the accompanying members of the delegation attended to all matters on the agenda and will be returning to 2

3 Baghdad soon; he added that there seems to be no problem in supplying Iraq with F-16 jet fighters that will be shipped in installments as bases that will house them are being built. The supreme religious authority said after Friday's prayers that all sects and religions have to stand shoulder to shoulder in fighting the common enemy that is posing grave danger to Iraq and the entire region and expanding to other regions of the world. - Regional region: Yemen - Former President Ali Abdullah Saleh denied rumors that he is seeking a safe exit as the Saudi led coalition continues pounding forces loyal to him and the Houthis in Aden, Sanaa and other cities and towns; the United Nations said that the number of displaced people exceeded 150,000 and at least 750 reported dead with many children among them; Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) is thriving in this atmosphere of lawlessness and chaos; AQAP has reportedly took control of an airport in the southern part of the country; more countries including Iraq said that the Saudi led airstrikes should stop as they are destroying the country's infrastructure and killed many innocent people including women and children. Egypt: Egyptian security forces said that terrorists belonging to affiliates of the Islamic State exploded an IED targeting an army patrol in northern Sinai peninsula killing one soldier and wounding three others as the security forces are taking measures to tighten the noose on the terrorists in the area close to Gaza strip; three rather small protests were reported in Cairo and Alexandria but the protesters were quickly forced to disperse by security forces that gained control of the busy intersections - Egypt has suggested to Saudi Arabia to conduct joint military maneuvers that may include other Arab countries in the near future. 3

4 Israel: Hawkish Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated his call for stiffer sanctions to be imposed on Iran until it rejects aiding terrorism and recognizes Israel's right to exist in addition to practically scrapping the entire Iranian nuclear program, something that the Iranians will strongly oppose and is not included in the scope of negotiations between the world powers and Iran; observers say that Netanyahu prefers to see the Iranian nuclear facilities bombed, that will certainly create another and much bigger war in the region. - Financial news: Economist Dr. Ali Mahmoud who just returned from visiting several European countries and the United States said that he met with several high ranking members of multinational companies including CEOs who expressed their interest in investing in Iraq's infrastructure and industries as soon as the security situation allows; he added that they all agree that substantial steps must be taken in Iraq to start building industries and agricultural projects that will employ tens of thousands of Iraqis and generate revenue to lessen the dependency on petrodollars; he commented that Iraqis including officials were "spoiled" when oil prices were high and the expectation that they will remain relatively high; the more than 50% plunge in oil prices since the high of last summer was a "strong jolt and a crude wake up call" to all Iraqis including the private sector. In a phone interview the Deputy Minister of Electricity said that electricity has been restored to more liberated areas in Salaheddin and other provinces; he added that the ministry will be very busy in the coming weeks repairing and maintaining power plants, distribution facilities, large transformers and other equipment in order to provide as much electrical power as possible before the height of the summer but urged all to save and avoid unnecessary usage. As the Prime Minister Haidar Abadi and the accompanying ministers and other high ranking officials wrap up their meetings with American officials and CEOs of major banks and other companies, Iraq got a commitment of 4

5 $200 million in humanitarian aid in addition to soft loans, shipments of arms and other goods on deferred payment basis; a number of American companies expressed their readiness to invest in Iraq's infrastructure projects; Iraq is facing challenging fiscal issues due to the ongoing war against the Islamic State and the plunge in oil prices. Oil prices settled a little lower today to a little above $63 for Brent oil on the news that OPEC countries boosted their exports; Iraq which is the second largest OPEC exporter after Saudi Arabia is expected to export a record 3.15 million barrels per day in April and the trend of increasing crude oil production and exportation to continue; Iraq is expected to export up to six million barrels per day by The Ministry of Construction and Housing revealed that Iraq lost over two trillion Dinars in infrastructure due to the terrorists of the Islamic State blowing up scores of bridges, highways and buildings in addition to the loss of priceless artifacts; damaged oil pipelines and stolen oil is not included in this assessment; that number is expected to grow until all provinces have been liberated. Prime Minister Abadi told a forum in Washington that Iraq is committed to making difficult but necessary reforms to its bureaucracy and regulations for foreign companies to attract much needed regional and international investors; experts and observers said that they expect billions of dollars to be invested in Iraq starting this year as the security situation gets better. The Kurdish airline Zagros Jet has been given a license to fly domestically; the routes will include Baghdad, Sulaimaniyah, Najaf and Basra; so far Iraqi Airways was the only one providing domestic flights; the service will start April 20. Iran said that it plans to increase its trade with Iraq by at least 30% this year; that will include natural gas shipments. 5

6 A member of parliament that did not want to be named said that the Iraqi Dinar is undervalued and that the central bank should start taking measures to increase its value; he believes that this is necessary to boost the Iraqi economy. - Sports: Basra Ports Authority soccer team beat its federal police counterpart 2-1 in a friendly game. * Scrolling banner: Iraqis interviewed in restaurants and parks in Baghdad said that they look forward for the day that all of Iraq is liberated and politicians pay more attention to financial issues. Terms & Conditions Copyright 2015 DinarAlert & DinarAlert Iraqi Television Transcript Service (ITTS). All rights reserved. No part of this service may be reproduced by any process, electronic or otherwise, in any material form or transmitted to any other person or stored electronically in any form, without the prior written permission of DinarAlert. 1. The s provided is for information only; 2. You may save or print a single copy for personal use only, not to be reproduce without the prior written permission of DinarAlert; 3. You acknowledge that the Data is provided by DinarAlert. This will also apply to another website or Internet Service Provider who establishes a link to this Website (dinaralert.webs.com); 4. You are not to provide the Data to any another person without the prior written consent of DinarAlert and payment of an agreed copyright fee; 5. You are not to modify the Data without the express prior written permission of DinarAlert. 6